Two patches of sugar snap peas trellised. Two rows of French fillet beans planted. A handful of seeds for 2011 purchased at 40 percent off.

One glass of wine spilled, all over myself when, kicking back with Soil Sister Sheron after we’d conquered the big plant on Sunday night, and, so stupid-tired and stupid-happy that I couldn’t hold my liquor, I fumbled it midair. I caught the glass, but the contents were all over me. Two eye-popping pink irresistible penstemons bought (but not planted yet).

Finally, happily, we’re in. We’re IN. In at her big garden with its new offshoots and the new squash patch, and we’re in at my little garden at my house, in the brick planter with its second crop of mesclun coming up and its lavender and lemon-thyme and chocolate mint and coreopsis. There are beds still to be dug, de-weeded, but faced with both of us traveling the following weekend, cool-ish weather and the opportunity to grab some of her husband’s time doing some of the digging, we knocked this one out.

And Sheron had this great idea, the same one that the nice Russian lady with the flea-beetle questions at the community garden had: plant tomatoes in a circular well with the sides bounded by garden edging. You just dig your hole, make a circle out of the stuff, then plant and fill in. The circle of edging holds back the soil, and you still have a catch basin around your tomato plant so that it grabs extra water whenever you (or the skies) are giving the plants water. (Otherwise, your well fills in as its soil walls crumble in any hard rain or hard soaking.

At my house, I spread a little corn gluten in my wells, hoping to delay the return of the weeds I’d just evicted — mallow, thistle, bindweed, always bindweed. We’ll see how it works.

There’ll always be more to do. Watering. Weeding. A co-worker just gave me three tiny tomatillos to distract the bugs from the potatoes, a la Michael Pollen’s trick. (It seems to work.)

But we knocked it out. We laughed. We dug. We drank (I’d managed a few sips of wine before my party foul). All’s right with my world. (and with the Russian lady’s radishes –the flea beatles were chowing on them, but not any of her other veggies. And she’ll still get radishes).

What’s your score? Are you in yet?

"Woolly School Gardens"

And have you seen these wacky, woolly wall-garden pockets? If you’re interested in kids learning to garden, these folks need you to vote for them for a Pepsi Refresh Challenge grant. They could get $250,000 to put more wall gardens in urban schools.

Hello Susan,6 various types of tomato transplants; 2 cukes (in pots), 2 anaheims, 2 sweet bell peppers, my peas are blooming (finally) Oregon and sugar snaps, my green beans (both pole and bush) are sprouting, and various annuals in pots. My eggplants are growing in pots, due to lack of space in the garden, and I have basil interspersed in the pot with them. My chives need transplanting to a more suitable place, as I have to lean across the garden to get at them, and I am hoping the onion starts I planted back in March are starting to bulb up. The various lettuces are growing well, and am thinking about planting more. I am hoping my brussel sprout plants grow well, and am thinking about staking them to keep them from flopping over. Plans for this evening include planting some dill seeds so as to get some more variety in the salads that I have. Waiting for my zinnias to sprout, and watching as the rose petals unfurl on my David Austin roses. So yes, it is All In! Thanks for writing!

Marie

Dear Susan, Congratulations! Please tell more about corn gluten. It sounds like something I need to use in my garden.Marie